FOREST AND STREAM 
030 
ELECTION OF A. C. A. OFFICERS AND 
OTHER NOTES. 
At the last meeting of the Executive Committee 
of the American Canoe Association held on Sugar 
Island under the Constitutional provision, it 
was the turn of the Northern Division to take 
the Commodore and the Camp for 1916. Vice- 
Commodore John MacKay of the Northern Divi¬ 
sion was in line and his popularity and efficiency 
made him candidate for a selection. Conditions 
of so stupendous a character facing our members 
in the Northern Division made Mr. McKay hesi¬ 
tate in acccepting the proffer of election as Com¬ 
modore and the Division surrendered its right to 
hold the Meet and the Commodoreship in 1916. 
In accordance therewith and owing to the most 
excellent record made by Commodore C. Arthur 
Spaulding, the Executive Committee unanimously 
re-elected him for a second term, which most 
unusual honor, he was good enough to accept and 
we are assured not only a successful Meet of the 
General Association in 1916, but also that the 
several Divisions will be strengthened and the 
whole membership will be benefited by the unsel¬ 
fish and efficient work of Commodore Spaulding 
another year. 
The attention of the Board of Governors at 
their meeting held before the Executive Commit¬ 
tee meeting, and the Executive Committee was 
called to the present provision of the Consti¬ 
tution and By-Laws as regards the holding 
of the Annual A. C. A. General Camp and the 
provision in relation to the distribution of the gen¬ 
eral funds for General and Division purposes. 
You will remember that Section IV of Chapter 
1 of the By-Laws provides that 60% of all money 
received by the treasurer shall be applied to the 
Division and 40% to the A. C A. treasury each 
year, except that when the Division holds the 
A. C. A. Camp it shall contribute its entire re¬ 
ceipts for that year. This year, the Commodore 
was elected and the Meet was held by the Cen¬ 
tral Division. Next year the Commodore will 
come from the membership at large, although he 
actually lives in the Central Division and no Di¬ 
vision will hold the Meet as the Northern Divi¬ 
sion did not feel that they would be able to do 
so. 
The condition of affairs presents rather an 
anomalous emergency, for while Commodore 
Spaulding had the entire receipts of the Central 
Division, or about $35000 to run his 1915 Meet, 
there is no provision in our By-Laws or Con¬ 
stitution whereby he will have any ‘"unds to run 
the 1916 Meet. It was presented to the Executive 
Committee that some provision should be made 
in the Constitution and By-Laws to meet such an 
emergency so that all of the memb rs of the as¬ 
sociation would be benefited. Th^ attention of 
the Executive Committee was also called to the 
operation of this same Section IV of Chapter 1, as 
at present constituted which provides the Divi¬ 
sion from which the Commodore shall be selected 
shall carry the Meet and tint the whole of the 
receipts of that Division shal’ be given that year 
for this purpose. This rule acts in a very uneven 
way and rra' es t almost impossible for a Com¬ 
modore coming from one of the smaller Divi¬ 
sions to adequa ely conduct the General Meet for 
that year. 
For usance, t nder the present rule, the Atlan¬ 
tic Division for four years gives to the Associa¬ 
tion 40% of its yearly income. The total last 
year was $561.00, consequently 40%, would be 
Photographs by Our “Picture Man” at A. C. A. 
Meet, Sugar Island, August 6-20, 1915. 
$224.00. On the fifth year the Atlantic Division 
would give 100% or $561.00, and four years at 
40%, namely, $224.40, would equal $897.60, so the 
Atlantic Division would contribute to the Associ¬ 
ation $1,458.60 in five years. 
Under the plan which we are now proposing, 
which will give the Association 50%, instead of 
40% of the gross receipts each year, the Atlantic 
Division would contribute each year for five years, 
$280.50, a total of $1,402.50. You see this would 
be $56.10 less contributed by the Division to the 
A. C. A. than at present. 
The Northern Division’s total receipts for last 
year was $49.00. Under the present rule if this 
were the average amount received by the Divi¬ 
sion, 40% would be $19.60 each year, or for four 
years, $78.40, and every five years they would 
pay the whole amount. $49.00, which for five 
years would total, $127.40. Under the new plan 
suggested, that is by giving 50% of the gross 
receipts each year to the Association, the 5 °% 
each year would be $24.50, which would total in 
five years, $122.50, or $4.90 less than is given un¬ 
der the present rule. 
It is proposed therefore that Section IV of 
Chapter 1, of the By-Laws be amended by strik¬ 
ing out the word “sixty” in the second line of this 
Section, and substituting therefore the word 
“fifty.” By striking the word “forty” in the 
third line and substituting there the word “fifty,” 
and striking all the remainder of the line after 
tne word “treasury.” Also by striking out all 
the fourth, fifth and sixth lines. Also by putting 
a capital “T” at the word “the” in the beginning 
of the seventh line and by striking out the word 
“other” after the word “from” in the seventh 
line. 
The new section will then read as follows: 
Section IV. Division of fees and dues.—The 
entrance fees and dues shall be received by the 
treasurer, fifty per cent, for the Division and 
fifty per cent, for the A. C. A. treasury. The 
percentage due the Association from Divisions 
shall be figured on the total of all dues and en¬ 
trance fees received during the year. 
If this should meet the approval of the mem¬ 
bership of the Association, then it would be nec¬ 
essary to further amend the By-Laws in Chapter 
III by striking out in the third line all of the 
words after the word “Division” and continuing 
the rest of that Chapter as it at present stands. 
I am sending this communication to you so 
that if it meets your approval in its present shape 
you also will sign the same and it then can be 
published “in one of the official organs,” in ac¬ 
cordance with Chapter XIII with a notice that 
this amendment to the By-Laws will be intro¬ 
duced at the next meeting of the Executive Com¬ 
mittee for action. Robert J. Wieken. 
To the Members of the American Canoe As¬ 
sociation. 
In accordance with the above communication, 
addressed to H. Lansing Quick, President of the 
Board of Governors of the American Canoe As- 
